by Massimo Franchi

Interview with Jean-Marcel Boudard, French journalist with Ouest France and a member of the international jury for the European Golden Boy

The list of 100 nominees for the 2026 Golden Boy award has been announced: which players from your country (born on or after 1 January 2006) did you expect to see on the list, and why?
Warren Zaïre-Emery (PSG, 2006), Ibrahim Mbaye (PSG, 2008), Eli Junior Kroupi (Bournemouth, 2006), Ayyoub Bouaddi (Lille, 2007), Tylel Tati (Nantes, 2008), Rudy Matondo (Paris FC, 2008). A special mention also goes to Kader Meité (Al Hilal, 2007), who however no longer plays in Europe.

Among your favourite players (waiting, of course, for the European club cup finals and the World Cup, as well as the first part of next season), is there one who, in your opinion, deserves more than the others to win or finish very high in the 24th edition of the trophy reserved for the best under-21 player of the year?
Warren Zaïre-Emery, playing as a full-back for PSG and the French national team, and Eli Junior Kroupi, who is having his first Premier League season (8 goals).

In your country, at club level, have any professional or amateur clubs recently stood out for the way they organise their youth academies and scout for future talent – perhaps by building new sports centres dedicated to children or launching special, meaningful initiatives to encourage parents to enrol their children?
There have not been major changes in France within the French Football Federation (FFF). Football remains the most attractive sport and France already has good facilities for welcoming and developing young players from an early age. Professional clubs, however, have invested in infrastructure and their training centres: PSG, Nice, Lorient, etc.

Created in 2003, Golden Boy will celebrate its first “jubilee” next year (2027), marking almost a quarter of a century of existence. Could you take stock of this period? In your opinion, how has the award evolved, in terms of its international impact, media coverage, the appeal it has among players, insiders, experts and professionals, as well as the interest it generates among fans and readers?
The award remains the most prestigious one and has a strong reputation among young players. It is considered more influential than the Kopa Trophy. There are increasingly more individual awards, but the Golden Boy remains the most sought-after and the most established. It owes this to its history and its list of winners, which has often been ahead of its time. It has never really made mistakes and has revealed players before anyone else. This ability to discover talent is what gives it credibility.